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Sunday, May 14, 2006

Press Release from High Tower Realty in Central Florida

Check out this press release from High Tower Realty in central Florida. The press release is titled " What Bubble? Florida's Vacation Home Market Defies Predictions of Falling Prices:

The latest figures show selling prices of vacation homes in Central Florida have not fallen during the last twelve months. Buyers are coming back, and we are seeing the first signs of a return towards a normal market. The predictions of the 'Housing Bubble' advocates don't hold up to scrutiny.

Orlando, FL (PRWEB) May 11, 2006 -- For the first time this year there are unmistakable signs of a return towards normality in the Central Florida vacation home market. Hightower Realty (http://www.hightower-realty.com) has been looking since the beginning of the year for an improvement in the weak market that followed the frantic sellers market of the previous two years. Until recently there was little cause for optimism, but now everything is starting to change. Agents throughout the area are reporting more requests to show homes for sale. Offers are starting to come in for some of the more realistically priced homes. And over-priced homes are disappearing from the market or being reduced in price down to more sensible levels.

Despite earlier predictions, it is becoming clear that selling prices for vacation homes have held up remarkably well throughout the recent strong buyers market, disproving the alarmist predictions of the 'bubble burst' advocates. The latest statistics show that recent market problems have had nothing to do with values, and everything to do with the absence of buyers.

Many reports over the last year have talked about the housing bubble bursting in the Central Florida market and in particular in the market for vacation homes. In our view there never was a bubble to burst.

The best line is "The latest statistics show that recent market problems have had nothing to do with values, and everything to do with the absence of buyers." Why is that? Perhaps because the price is too high to attract a reasonable amount of buyers.

1 comment:

OK, I'm a reasonable HH, not a BH, but I can't resist this. You've heard of "Georgetown Heights" at Wisconsin and Calvert? It's not even close to Georgetown, but is actually at the Cathedral area north of Glover Park. Anyway, 18 units are currently for sale, which I think is almost ALL of them that have been handed over by the developer. You can smell the panic coming off the place.

Below is a list of all 18 units with their sqft and asking price, plus the price per sqft:

There are so many problems with this list that it's hard to know where to start, but the guy who owns 101, the biggest one in the building, is selling his unitfor half a million less than 407. 101 is 15% larger than 407. Think Mr. 407 is in a panic?

He is so out of his mind, that he (or one of the other owners of a big unit) just posted his place for rent here for, wait for it, $7,500 a month! I doubt that he could rent it for $4,500 if he threw in furniture. http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/apa/160070246.html

Note that he refers to this development as a "Boutique Building" in or around Georgetown. Perhaps he meant in the sense that McLean is in or around the District.

There are other units for rent too, such as this one: http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/apa/160490724.html

The rent price just keeps dropping, and every week the owner holds a new open house. Rent should be more like $2800 to find a renter here. It's probably either unit 206 or 405, which are both the same size, but 406 wants, imagine, $301,000 more for it being two floors higher!

I'll watch to see if more units pop-up in what shall henceforth be called the "Cathedral Heights" development.